The present invention relates to an optical waveguide module.
An optical waveguide component has a plurality of optical waveguides, integrated at high densities and formed in a desired pattern on a flat substrate. It is employed for various applications as a multi-purpose component for use in optical communications. Use of such an optical waveguide component inevitably requires a technique for connecting optical fibers to the optical waveguides. In this case, it is general practice to form an optical fiber array by arranging and fixing single or multi optical fibers at predetermined intervals and to join the optical fiber array and the optical waveguide together with their side faces abutting on each other. Then, the optical fiber array is aligned with the optical waveguides in small increments while the power of the light transmitted from the optical fibers is being monitored at the end of the optical waveguides to search for the maximum value of the power of the transmitted light. After the optical fiber has been aligned with its respective optical waveguide by searching for the peak power of the light, the optical fiber and its respective optical waveguide are fixedly bonded to each other at the butt-jointed point with an ultraviolet cure adhesive or the like.
Incidentally, in recent years, an unprecedented excitation light source for supplying power exceeding 300 mW has increasingly been required, such as in a long-distance optical transmission line, to excite an optical amplifier, such as an erbium-doped fiber amplifier or Raman amplifier. Available means for providing such high-power excitation light include an optical waveguide component for multiplexing beams of excitation light with each other. For example, available is an optical waveguide component that provides high-power excitation light by multiplexing, using a Mach-Zender interferometer (MZI), beams of light having a plurality of wavelengths within the wavelength band usable as excitation light.
With such an optical waveguide component being coupled with optical fibers, optical power exceeding 300 mW passes through an optical waveguide, especially at the high-power transmission end face from which beams of light having a plurality of wavelengths, multiplexed with each other, are transmitted.
Furthermore, with an increasing level of wavelength multiplexing in the wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) communications, communication light itself is expected to have a high power exceeding 300 mW. In this regard, the WDM system also requires a high-power optical wavelength multiplexing/demultiplexing module with a wavelength multiplexing/demultiplexing optical waveguide that employs an arrayed waveguide grating (AWG).
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an optical waveguide module which can maintain the reliability of the connection between the optical waveguide and the optical fiber even upon the transmission of high-power light, can be produced at low cost and provide improved resistance to environment, and is provided with optical waveguides integrated at high densities.
In order to achieve the aforementioned objective, an optical waveguide module, according to the present invention, comprises an optical waveguide component having an auxiliary connection member connected to an end of an optical waveguide chip, and at least one array member for attaching an end of at least one optical fiber to a connection member which is to be connected to the auxiliary connection member. The module is configured such that the optical waveguide component and the array member are connected to each other via the auxiliary connection member and the connection member. An optical waveguide, exposed from the end of the optical waveguide chip, is in direct contact with a core of the optical fiber exposed from an end of the array member.
Further, to achieve the aforementioned objective, an optical waveguide module, according to the present invention, comprises the following. An optical waveguide component having an auxiliary connection member connected to an end of an optical waveguide chip, and at least one array member for attaching an end of at least one optical fiber to a connection member to be connected to the auxiliary connection member. The module is configured such that the optical waveguide component and the array member are connected to each other via the auxiliary connection member and the connection member. A presser member is disposed to press at least one of the optical waveguide chips and the optical fiber in a direction of connection, and an optical waveguide exposed from the end of the optical waveguide chip is in direct contact with a core of the optical fiber exposed from an end of the array member.
Furthermore, to achieve the aforementioned objective, an optical waveguide module, according to the present invention, comprises a first array member with a plurality of optical fibers having ends attached to a first connection member, and a second array member with at least one optical fiber having an end attached to a second connection member. The module further comprises an optical waveguide chip having an input and output end face, and an optical waveguide for multiplexing a plurality of optical signals, which have different wavelengths inputted from a plurality of input ports to output a resulting optical signal from at least one output port. The module is configured such that the first array member is bonded with adhesive to the input end face of the optical waveguide chip; an auxiliary connection member is attached to the output end face of the optical waveguide chip; the second connection member is connected to the auxiliary connection member; and the second array member is coupled to the output end face of the optical waveguide chip via the second connection member and the auxiliary connection member. The module is further configured such that a presser member for pressing the auxiliary connection member and the second array member in a direction of connection is disposed across the auxiliary connection member and the second array member. A core of the optical waveguide exposed from the output end face of the optical waveguide chip is in direct contact with a core of the optical fiber exposed from an end of the second array member.
In this text, an auxiliary connection member means, a component to be attached to the end face of an optical waveguide chip. In addition, a connection member refers to a member, such as a substrate having a plurality of positioning grooves for positioning ferrule or optical fibers, which is used for the connection of optical fibers but has not yet been connected with an array of optical fibers. An array member refers to the aforementioned connection member, connected with an array of optical fibers, such as a connector plug or an optical fiber array.